Emirates SkyCargo, the freight division of Emirates, has operated its freighter aircraft from Birmingham Airport as part of a new bespoke service for the transportation of exclusive Jaguar Land Rover cars to Chicago.

Emirates SkyCargo flight EK9923 departed Birmingham Airport on its way to Chicago O'Hare International in the United States of America, to deliver cars for further testing. Metro Shipping, the logistics service provider appointed by Jaguar Land Rover, partner to Emirates and strategic partner of Birmingham Airport was on hand to coordinate the logistics of the exciting shipment.

The freighter service is part of Emirates SkyCargo’s specialised offering, Emirates SkyWheels - air transportation solutions for high value automobiles. The service offers the safe transportation of luxury, premium vehicles. Airfreighting the cars directly from Birmingham, the location of Jaguar Land Rover’s Solihull facility, to Chicago, also results in reduced handling of cars as there will no longer be a requirement for long-distance trucking of the vehicles.

The Jaguar Land Rover cars were uplifted by an Emirates SkyCargo Boeing 777 Freighter aircraft which has the capacity to carry over 100 tonnes of cargo. Large and outsized shipments can also be easily uplifted through the aircraft’s wide main deck cargo doors. The aircraft is one of the most modern, technologically advanced freighters available, and has the lowest fuel burn of any comparable sized aircraft.

Hiran Perera, Senior Vice President, Cargo Planning and Freighters, Emirates SkyCargo, said: “We have seen huge demand from customers across the globe for bespoke transportation solutions for various business verticals, which is why we’ve launched a number of sector-specific products as part of our offerings, such as Emirates SkyPharma, Emirates SkyWheels and more recently Emirates SkyFresh.

“It is a positive development that we are able to work with leading car manufacturers like Jaguar Land Rover on our Emirates SkyWheels offering. As a global facilitator of trade with a network spanning 155 destinations across six continents, we look forward to working with businesses across the Midlands and the UK to help them connect with their international counterparts.”

Paul Kehoe, Chief Executive Officer, Birmingham Airports said: "The Midlands is at the heart of UK manufacturing and the top export region outside of London and the South East, accounting for almost 20 percent of all English export goods.

"Air connectivity is an absolutely vital ingredient in growing this success and supporting global manufacturing brands such as Jaguar Land Rover, which produces thousands of vehicles each week from the Solihull plant, near the airport site. It therefore makes absolute sense to see more exporters using Birmingham Airport as a gateway to the world and I encourage business leaders in the region to support this opportunity to even further enhance the success of Midlands Engine."

Lawrence Boyle, Global Test Facilities Team Leader, Jaguar Land Rover said: "This is another milestone for Jaguar Land Rover as it continues to improve productivity, saving significant time and cost in the movement of our vehicles. By working with Emirates SkyCargo and using Birmingham Airport, we have a hub much closer to the centre of our engineering and manufacturing operations, enabling us to transport our premium products more quickly and efficiently. We are proud to have played a role in making this happen and supporting sustainable, profitable growth."

Tom Fernihough, Automotive Director, Metro Shippingsaid: ‘’Metro is delighted to realise its vision of achieving global supply chain solutions through local strategic partnerships creating a truly unique, bespoke and scalable platform, with the support of Emirates SkyCargo, Jaguar Land Rover and Birmingham Airport. We have drawn on our relationships and over 35 years of experience within the automotive logistics sector to deliver benefit to all parties involved, which we will also be offering to other shippers in the region.”

In December 2016, Emirates SkyCargo carried nearly 5,700 tonnes of cargo from the UK, up 29% on the same period last year*. This was the first month that Emirates SkyCargo exported a larger volume of cargo from the UK than any other airline. The total cargo volume flown by the UK arm of Emirates SkyCargo between January 2014 and December 2016 was nearly 190,000 tonnes.